Tuesday, February 18, 2014

It must be hormonal or the cold weather, but lately my usually greasy face (read: oil machinery) has been patchy and somewhat dry. While my Josie Maran face mist is a life-saver by mid-day, Ms. Common Sense says I need more hydration. Maybe BB has the answer? But see I'm not big on BB or beauty balm because I detest adding more shine, at least based on my previous experiences. Yo mama so ooompa loompa, she gonna look o'wange like no otha!

Available in only three shades (that's one of the downside), I picked up medium.

What the website says: "This intensely hydrating complex deeply moisturizes skin all day and corrects the appearance of uneven skintone and imperfections instantly. It contains vitamin C to correct discoloration and rose de mai extract to soften texture. The complex primes and unifies skin, creating a perfect canvas for foundation application".

Okay let me preface that as I write this post, I am sick with cough and cold. I had flu shot last month but being exposed to sick patients day in and out, it's no surprise that I contracted upper respiratory infection. Yep, despite my OCD handwashing and sanitizing!!!

Any- hachoo! here's a before and after comparison. Obviously, "before" is my sick face without makeup (except for groomed brows & clear gloss; but if you're damn curious to see moi with sparse and uneven brows, I invite you to see the monster here); "after" is still me, duh?! wearing YSL Top Secrets BB Cream in medium.

So for the nth time, say hi to my unedited open pores, acne scars and redness. It takes bajillion guts to expose my undone face but hey, how are you going to appreciate my review if you only see the finished look?

Let's get down to 'biz. Point-blank, this BB cream is another glorified tinted moisturizer but three points better. First, it is lightweight and very easy to blend. I like to apply it using Real Techniques buffing brush (I squeeze the product directly on the bristles and then blend and buff onto my face in circular motions). It's light coverage, and as you can see from the photo, it camouflaged some redness. Since it's on the dewy side, one round is enough for me. You can see from the "after" photo that it gave my forehead and nose some shine. To reduce the dewiness, I gently dab tissue over my face to absorb the extra moisture then seal with a setting powder.

To those still unfamiliar with the "wonders of BB cream", it's supposed to do all these nice things (1) sun protection (2) prevent wrinkles (3) reduce lines and pore size (4) prime the face. Oftentimes, these companies will lure you with highfalutin jargons, i.e. BustWrinkle Technology, patented-PoreReduce, pending trademark FerfectFace, etc. But come to think of it, it's just a repetition or replication of benefits albeit worded differently. So in reference to my "before and after" photo, you and I can see that my dreaded pores were slightly reduced. Dimethicone is a popular cosmetic ingredient, and it's supposed to do just that, including priming the face and filling lines. Here's a complete ingredient list of YSL BB cream, don't blink because dimethicone is present.

Like I said, BB cream is touted to be an all-in-one makeup so I purposely skipped my skincare regimen in the morning (serum, moisturizer, sunscreen, priming) to test the longevity, hydration, and even oxidation properties of YSL Top Secrets BB Cream.

The reveal. It did oxidize after five hours minus the oompa loompa scare. As to be expected, my face felt hydrated but I had to blot three times throughout the day. One thing worth-mentioning though, I'm not sure if it's across the board but my face felt cool for few seconds after applying this BB. Lastly, you know that I advocate sun protection so having SPF 25 is a bonus! As to the promise of youth? C'mon, don't tell me you still fall for it! Aging is inevitable, and it's only a matter of time. But if you take good care of your skin i.e. avoiding too much sun/ tanning bed, moisturizing daily, you don't smoke, then chances are, supple skin can be yours for a while. Overall, this is a good BB cream; it's something I will wear when dry skin continue to be a pressing concern or in days when I feel like less is more.

Ladies and gals, in between the sniffling and coughing, here's the finished look, a.k.a Face of the Day.

34 comments:

My favorite BB cream is Peach Sake Pore by Skin Food. It's made with oily skin in mind, and it doesn't have that grayish cast that I dislike so much, but is so common in Asian BB creams. Pretty decent coverage, as well.

Hmm, not sure how I feel about this one, especially for $50. Thank you for sharing your before and after photos, it makes it really easy to see the results. My favorite BB creams right now are Missha Perfect Cover and Elisha Coy Always Nuddy, both are Korean.

I really like Skin79 VIP Gold (just look for the gold one). The Skin79 hot pink version is also good- it doesn't have the slight grayish cast that the gold version has, yet for some inexplicable reason the gold looks slightly better on my pale skin w neutral undertones. Like the Korean BBs a lot, but I'm interested in trying Guerlain and Bobbi Browns versions. Oh yeah, I also use Amore Pacific cushion CC. It is awesome!

I haven't tried this one, but I love BB creams. My faves are the Estee Lauder one and Peach Girl (Korean). I think you look fine with just the BB cream - it got rid of the redness and evened everything out. I love the FOTD.